Vivek Vihar blaze: Hours before tragedy, 21-year-old spoke to family he would never see again

Vivek Vihar blaze: Hours before tragedy, 21-year-old spoke to family he would never see again

New Delhi, Just two hours before the blaze ravaged the Vivek Vihar residential building, 21-year-old Prasuk Jain spoke to his parents from Ujjain a routine late-night call that would be his last.

Vivek Vihar blaze: Hours before tragedy, 21-year-old spoke to family he would never see again

"I last spoke to them around 1 am. They asked me how my day was, and I asked how they were doing," Prasuk said, his voice trembling.

A fire broke out at a four-storey residential building in east Delhi's Vivek Vihar area early Sunday, killing nine persons from two families.

Among the victims were Prasuk's father Nitin Jain , mother Shailey Jain , and elder brother, Samyak Jain . Police said two of the three were found near the staircase on the fourth floor.

Prasuk, the youngest in the family, survived only because he had travelled to Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh with friends, a trip that, relatives say, had been postponed twice earlier.

"He had planned the trip twice before, but it got cancelled. Even this time, it was only by chance that he left for the trip," said Amit Jain, a family friend.

"I don't know what to call it luck or fate. He was saved; but he has lost his entire family. He is just 21," he lamented.

Prasuk said he was informed about the fire around 6.50 am, adding that he took the first available flight back to Delhi, reaching later in the day.

"Now, he is staying with his grandmother in Surya Nagar. He is expected to take charge of the family's restaurant business in Karkardooma," Amit said.

Staff at the restaurant, which briefly shut operations after the incident, reopened Monday.

"We are devastated. We had closed yesterday, but today we resumed work. We will make sure everything here is taken care of," an employee said.

Friends and relatives remember the Jains as a close-knit, warm family. Just two years ago, they had celebrated Nitin and Shailey's 25th wedding anniversary with a large gathering.

"It was a beautiful celebration," Amit said, adding that Shailey was a very warm and sociable person.

The family was also preparing for Samyak's wedding.

"They were planning his wedding, maybe this year or next. He was doing very well. He was involved in the family restaurant and had even tied up with a Dubai-based South Indian restaurant chain," Amit said.

Neighbours believe the family may have failed to escape the inferno due to a tragic error in those frantic moments.

"The fire spread very quickly from the second to the fourth floor. They had rights to the roof; so they must have tried to escape through their. In a panic, they may have picked the wrong key for the rooftop door," a neighbour said.

He further said the mother and son were found holding each other. However, officials said that since the bodies were severely burnt, it would be confirmed after the DNA tests are done.

The fire is suspected to have been triggered by an air-conditioner blast on the second floor. The flames rapidly spread through the rear side of the building, sending thick smoke upwards and trapping residents on the higher floors.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.